X—Henry and the Free-for-All
第十章——亨利与自由赛跑
JAMES HENRY ALDEN was a very rich man. His big mills stood just between Greenfield and Silver City.
詹姆斯·亨利·奥尔登是一个非常富有的人。他的大工厂就坐落在格林菲尔德和银城之间。
Now J. H. Alden liked boys. He liked to see them running and jumping and playing. So each year, with three other rich men, he gave a Field Day to the town of Silver City. And even the mills were closed on Field Day.
J. H. 奥尔登很喜欢男孩子。他喜欢看他们奔跑、跳跃和玩耍。所以每年，他都会和其他三位富人一起为银城举办一场“野外运动日”。甚至在运动日这天，连工厂都会停工放假。
Every year the boys were in training for the races. And not only boys, but men also, thin and fat, and girls trained for Field Day.
每年男孩子们都会为比赛进行训练。不仅是男孩，还有男人，无论胖瘦，以及女孩子们，都会为野外运动日做准备。
There were prizes for all kinds of races—running and swimming and jumping.
各种比赛都有奖品——包括跑步、游泳和跳远。
But the best one was a foot race, called a free-for-all, because anyone could run in it. Mr. Alden gave a prize of twenty-five dollars and a silver cup to the winner of the free-for-all. Sometimes a boy won the race, sometimes a girl. Once a fat man had won it.
但最精彩的是一个名为“自由赛跑”的跑步比赛，因为任何人都可以参加。奥尔登先生会给自由赛跑的冠军颁发25美元奖金和一个银杯。有时是男孩获胜，有时是女孩。曾经还有一个胖子赢过这场比赛。
On Field Day Henry was cutting the grass for Dr. Moore. Suddenly the doctor stopped his car in the street and called to Henry.
在运动日那天，亨利正在为摩尔医生割草。突然，医生把车停在街上，叫住了亨利。
“Hop in,” he said. “Today is Field Day, and I want you to see the races.”
“快上车，”他说，“今天是野外运动日，我想让你去看看比赛。”
Henry hopped in, and the doctor started the car.
亨利跳上了车，医生发动了汽车。
“I’m sorry I can’t go,” said Dr. Moore, “and I want to know all about it. I want you to tell me who wins each race.”
“很遗憾我不能去，”摩尔医生说，“但我想知道所有的情况。我希望你能告诉我每场比赛谁赢了。”
Soon Henry found himself sitting on the bleachers. By and by a small boy climbed up the bleachers and sat beside him. Then a man called, “Free-for-all! Come and get ready!”
很快，亨利发现自己坐在了露天看台上。过了一会儿，一个小男孩爬上来看台，坐在他旁边。接着有人喊道：“自由赛跑！快来准备！”
“What is that?” asked Henry. “A free-for-all?”
“那是什么？”亨利问，“自由赛跑？”
“Don’t you know?” asked the small boy. “Didn’t you see the one last year?”
“你不知道吗？”小男孩问，“你去年没看过吗？”
“No,” said Henry.
“没有，”亨利说。
The boy laughed. “That was a funny one,” he said. “There were two fat men in it, and some girls and boys. That boy over there won it. You should have seen him. He ran so fast you could hardly see his legs at all!”
男孩笑了。“那次可有趣了，”他说，“有两个胖子参加，还有一些女孩和男孩。那边那个男孩赢了。你真该看看他。他跑得太快了，你几乎都看不清他的腿！”
Henry looked at the winner of last year’s race. He was smaller than Henry, but he was older. Suddenly Henry stood up and quietly left the bleachers. He went to the room where the boys were getting ready for the race.
亨利看了看去年比赛的冠军。他比亨利个子小，但年纪比亨利大。突然，亨利站起身，悄悄离开了看台。他走到男孩子们准备比赛的房间。
“Do you want to run in the race?” a man asked him.
“你想参加比赛吗？”一个男人问他。
“Yes, I do,” replied Henry.
“是的，我想，”亨利回答。
The man gave him some track clothes to put on.
那人给了他一套田径服穿上。
“Where did you train?” he asked.
“你在哪里训练的？”他问。
“I never was trained,” said Henry.
“我从来没受过训练，”亨利说。
“These boys have been training all year,” remarked the man.
“这些孩子可是训练了一整年呢，”那人评论道。
“Oh, I don’t think I’ll win,” answered Henry. “But I like to run. It’s lots of fun, you know.”
“哦，我觉得我不会赢，”亨利回答，“但我喜欢跑步。你知道，这很有趣。”
“So it is,” said the man. “So it is.”
“确实如此，”那人说，“确实如此。”
Henry could hardly wait for the race to begin. He loved to run. But at last the race was called. It was time to start. Henry was Number 4.
亨利迫不及待地等着比赛开始。他热爱跑步。终于，比赛召集了。是时候开始了。亨利是4号选手。
Now Henry began to think. “It’s a long race,” he said to himself. “I must go easy at first.”
这时亨利开始思考。“这是一场长跑，”他对自己说，“一开始我必须跑得轻松点。”
The bell rang. Off went the runners down the track. In almost no time Henry was far behind most of the other runners. But he did not seem to mind this.
铃声响了。选手们沿着跑道冲了出去。几乎一瞬间，亨利就远远落后于大多数其他选手了。但他似乎并不介意。
“It’s fun to run, anyway,” he said again to himself. And he tried to see how easily he could run.
“不管怎样，跑步很有趣，”他又对自己说。于是他试着看自己能跑得多轻松。
All at once he had another thought. “I have tried to see how easily I can run,” he said to himself. “Now I’ll try to see how fast I can run.”
突然间，他有了另一个想法。“我已经试过自己能跑得多轻松了，”他对自己说，“现在我要试试自己能跑多快。”
Then all the people began to see how fast Henry could run. He ran faster and faster, and soon he passed the two girls ahead of him. Then he passed a fat man and a little boy.
然后所有人都开始看到亨利能跑多快了。他越跑越快，很快就超过了前面的两个女孩。接着他又超过了一个胖子和一个小男孩。
The people began to shout, “Number 4! Number 4!” Here was the kind of race they loved!
人们开始欢呼：“4号！4号！”这才是他们喜欢看的比赛！
“Faster, faster!” cried Henry to himself. “I can run faster than this.”
“快点，再快点！”亨利在心里呐喊，“我可以跑得比这更快。”
He could. He passed Number 25 and Number 6. Then he passed Number 5 and Number 10. Only one runner was ahead of Henry now. It was Number 16. Then Henry began to think of winning the race. He knew how much the twenty-five-dollar prize would mean to Jessie and the rest of the children.
他做到了。他超过了25号和6号。接着又超过了5号和10号。现在亨利前面只剩下一名选手了。那是16号。这时亨利开始想着赢得比赛。他知道那25美元的奖金对杰西和其他孩子们来说意味着什么。
“I am going to win this race!” he said to himself. “I must pass Number 16.”
“我一定要赢得这场比赛！”他对自己说，“我必须超过16号。”
He ran still faster. He could see the line at the end of the race.
他跑得更快了。他已经能看到终点的线了。
“Number 4! Number 4!” shouted the people. “He is going to win!”
“4号！4号！”人们高呼着，“他要赢了！”
When Henry was near Number 16, he put his head down and ran as fast as he could. He passed Number 16 and went across the line! He had won!
当亨利接近16号时，他低下头，拼尽全力冲刺。他超过了16号，冲过了终点线！他赢了！
The people shouted and shouted. Some men held Henry up high and carried him to Mr. Alden for the prize.
人们欢呼雀跃。几个男人把亨利高高举起，抬到奥尔登先生面前领奖。
Then a man asked, “What is your name, boy?”
这时一个人问道：“孩子，你叫什么名字？”
Henry did not know what to say. He did not want to tell his name. So he answered, “Henry James.” Now this was Henry’s name, but it was not all of his name.
亨利不知道该说什么。他不想说出自己的真名。所以他回答说：“亨利·詹姆斯。”这确实是亨利的名字，但不是他的全名。
At once the big sign said, HENRY JAMES, NUMBER 4 WINNER OF FREE-FOR-ALL
大告示牌上立刻显示出：亨利·詹姆斯，4号，自由赛跑冠军
“Here is the prize, Henry James,” said Mr. Alden. “You can run well, my boy. I like to see you run.”
“这是你的奖品，亨利·詹姆斯，”奥尔登先生说，“你跑得真好，孩子。我喜欢看你跑步。”
He gave Henry a silver cup and the twenty-five dollars. Then he shook hands with him.
他给了亨利一个银杯和25美元。然后和他握了手。
Just then Dr. Moore came along and climbed up in the bleachers, but Henry did not see him. The doctor laughed to himself as Henry James shook hands with James Henry.
就在这时，摩尔医生走了过来，爬上看台，但亨利没有看到他。当亨利·詹姆斯与詹姆斯·亨利握手时，医生暗自笑了起来。
At last Henry got away from the people and started back to Dr. Moore’s. He had the twenty-five-dollar prize in his pocket. When Dr. Moore came home and found Henry cutting the grass, he laughed quietly to himself.
最后，亨利摆脱了人群，回到摩尔医生家。他把25美元奖金装在口袋里。当摩尔医生回家发现亨利还在割草时，他偷偷地笑了。
“I just got home,” said Henry. “I will tell you who won all the races.”
“我刚到家，”亨利说，“我来告诉您谁赢了所有的比赛。”
Dr. Moore did not tell Henry that he had been up in the bleachers. He let Henry tell him about the races.
摩尔医生没有告诉亨利他曾坐在看台上。他让亨利给他讲比赛的情况。
“And who won the free-for-all?” he asked.
“那谁赢了自由赛跑？”他问。
“I did,” said Henry.
“是我，”亨利说。
“You did?” cried Dr. Moore. “Good for you! What are you going to do with the money?”
“是你？”摩尔医生叫道，“好样的！你打算怎么用这笔钱？”
“I’ll give it to Jessie,” answered Henry.
“我要把它给杰西，”亨利回答。
“Good,” said the doctor again.
“很好，”医生又说了一遍。
When Henry arrived at the boxcar with the twenty-five dollars, he found dinner ready. Jessie had boiled the rest of the vegetables and put butter on top. The children began to eat, but, hungry as they were, they stopped when Henry told them about the race and showed them the silver cup. They were so excited that they couldn’t eat.
当亨利带着25美元回到车厢时，发现晚饭已经准备好了。杰西煮了剩下的蔬菜，并在上面抹了黄油。孩子们开始吃饭，但尽管他们很饿，当亨利告诉他们比赛的事并展示银杯时，他们都停了下来。他们太激动了，以至于吃不下饭。
“You won the race, Henry?” cried Jessie, delighted. “Oh, I’m so glad!”
“你赢了比赛，亨利？”杰西高兴地叫道，“哦，我太高兴了！”
“You can run fast, Henry,” said Benny. “I’m glad you won the race, too.” He looked at the silver cup.
“你跑得真快，亨利，”本尼说，“我也很高兴你赢了比赛。”他看着那个银杯。
“I said my name was Henry James,” said Henry.
“我说我的名字叫亨利·詹姆斯，”亨利说。
“That’s right,” said Jessie. “So it is. You didn’t have to change it.”
“没错，”杰西说，“本来就是。你没必要改名字。”
“Are we rich now, Henry?” asked Benny.
“我们现在有钱了吗，亨利？”本尼问。
“No, not very,” said Henry, laughing. “By the way, I bought something for supper.”
“不，不算很有钱，”亨利笑着说，“顺便说一下，我买了一些晚餐吃的东西。”
Jessie looked in the bag. There were some fat brown potatoes in it.
杰西看了看袋子。里面有一些饱满的褐皮土豆。
“Oh, I know how to cook these!” cried Jessie, happily. “They will be good. You just wait.”
“哦，我知道怎么煮这些！”杰西开心地叫道，“一定会很好吃的。你们等着瞧吧。”
“I can’t wait,” said Henry, laughing. Then he went back to work.
“我都等不及了，”亨利笑着说。然后他又回去干活了。
After dinner, Benny played around with the dog.
晚饭后，本尼和小狗一起玩。
“Benny,” Jessie said suddenly, as she hung her dish towels up to dry. “It’s high time you learned to read.”
“本尼，”杰西突然说道，一边把擦碗巾挂起来晾干，“你也该学认字了。”
“No,” said Benny. “No school now.”
“不要，”本尼说，“现在不上学。”
Jessie laughed. “No,” she said, “you can’t go to school, but I can help you. I wish I had a book.”
杰西笑了。“是啊，”她说，“你不能去学校，但我可以帮你。要是有一本书就好了。”
“We could make a book,” said Violet. “We have all the papers left from bundles.”
“我们可以自己做一本书，”维奥莱特说，“我们还有捆包裹剩下的纸。”
“So we could,” replied Jessie. “But what could we use to make the words?”
“也是，”杰西回答，“但我们用什么来写字呢？”
“We could use a burned stick out of the fire,” said Violet.
“我们可以用火里烧过的木棍，”维奥莱特说。
So Jessie put the end of a long stick into the fire and burned it black. Then she used the burned end to make words.
于是杰西把一根长木棍的一头伸进火里烧黑。然后用烧黑的那头来写字。
“Won’t Henry be glad when he finds Benny can read?” cried Violet.
“亨利发现本尼会认字了，难道不会高兴吗？”维奥莱特叫道。
Now Benny did not want to learn to read. But he liked to watch the girls make the book. Jessie made the words SEE ME in the book. She called Benny. But he could not tell see from me.
其实本尼不想学认字。但他喜欢看女孩们做书。杰西在书上写了“SEE ME”（看我）这两个词。她叫来本尼。但他分不清“see”和“me”。
“Don’t you see, Benny?” said Jessie. “This one has an s. It says see. This one has m. It says me”
“你没看出来吗，本尼？”杰西说，“这个有s，读作see。这个有m，读作me。”
But Benny did not see.
但本尼还是没看出来。
“It is too hard for me,” he said.
“这对我来说太难了，”他说。
“I’ll tell you, Jessie,” said Violet at last. “Let’s make see on one paper and me on the other. That’s the way they do in school. Then have him point to see.”
“我有个主意，杰西，”维奥莱特最后说，“我们在一张纸上写see，另一张纸上写me。学校里就是这么教的。然后让他指出哪个是see。”
The girls did this. They called Benny, and Jessie showed him again very carefully the word that said see. Then she put the two words down on the ground.
女孩们照做了。她们叫来本尼，杰西再次非常仔细地给他看了写着see的那个词。然后把两个词放在地上。
“Now, Benny, point to see” said Jessie.
“现在，本尼，指一下哪个是see，”杰西说。
Benny looked at the two words. He could not tell.
本尼看着这两个词。他还是分不清。
But Watch barked and put his paw on see.
但是小狗Watch叫了一声，把爪子放在了see上面。
Now Watch did not know one word from the other, but Benny thought he did. Was he going to let a dog get ahead of him? Not Benny! He looked at the words and learned them almost at once.
其实Watch并不认识这些词，但本尼以为它认识。难道他要输给一只狗吗？本尼才不干！他看着那些词，几乎立刻就学会了。
“Good old Watch!” said Jessie.
“好样的Watch！”杰西说。
“It isn’t hard at all,” said Benny. “Is it, Watch?”
“这一点也不难嘛，”本尼说，“是吧，Watch？”
Before supper Benny could read, “See me. See me run. I can run. Can you run?”
晚饭前，本尼已经能读出：“看我。看我跑。我会跑。你会跑吗？”
“Good boy,” said Jessie. “Now I must get supper.”
“好孩子，”杰西说，“现在我得去做晚饭了。”
The children started up the fire and washed the potatoes in the brook. Then Jessie put wet papers around them and put them in the fire under the hot stones.
孩子们生起了火，在小溪里洗了土豆。然后杰西用湿纸把土豆包起来，放进火堆里的热石头下面。
“Are you going to burn them up, Jessie?” asked Benny.
“你要把它们烧焦吗，杰西？”本尼问。
“Oh, no, Benny,” said Jessie. “You wait and see.”
“哦，不会的，本尼，”杰西说，“你等着瞧吧。”
When Henry came home, he found Jessie rolling the potatoes out of the fire. They were very black.
亨利回家时，发现杰西正把土豆从火里滚出来。土豆变得漆黑。
“Oh, did you burn them up?” asked Henry.
“哦，你把它们烧糊了吗？”亨利问。
“No, indeed,” said Jessie. “Come and see.” She gave three black potatoes to each one.
“当然没有，”杰西说，“过来看看。”她给每人分了三个黑土豆。
“They are very hot,” said Violet. “Look out!”
“它们很烫，”维奥莱特说，“小心！”
“Open them,” said Jessie, “and take out the potato with a spoon. Then put butter on top and some salt. I will get Benny’s out. Well, how are they?”
“把它们掰开，”杰西说，“用勺子把土豆挖出来。然后在上面放些黄油和盐。我来帮本尼弄。怎么样，好吃吗？”
“Oh!” cried Benny. “They are delicious!”
“哦！”本尼叫道，“太好吃了！”
“What did I tell you?” said Jessie. “Have some milk!”
“我怎么说来着？”杰西说，“喝点牛奶吧！”
“Milk and potatoes make a very good supper,” said Henry.
“牛奶配土豆是一顿很好的晚餐，”亨利说。
“I can read,” remarked Benny.
“我会认字了，”本尼说道。
“What!” said Henry.
“什么！”亨利惊讶道。
“Yes, he can,” said Violet. “He learned this afternoon. Go and get your book, Benny.”
“是的，他会了，”维奥莱特说，“他今天下午学的。去把你的书拿来，本尼。”
Benny liked to read now. “It is not hard,” he said. “Watch can read, too.”
本尼现在喜欢阅读了。“这不难，”他说，“Watch也会读。”
“Oh, can he?” laughed Henry. “Let’s see him.”
“哦，是吗？”亨利笑道，“让我们看看。”
“Watch is too tired now,” said Benny. “I will read to you.”
“Watch现在太累了，”本尼说，“我来读给你听吧。”
Benny read out of his new book.
本尼朗读着他的新书。
“Good old Benny,” said Henry. “Come to bed now. You must be tired with all that work, and I am tired, too.”
“好样的本尼，”亨利说，“快去睡觉吧。忙了这么多事你一定累了，我也累了。”
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